New York City commuters are getting an early Christmas present from the MTA, which is slashing the cost of two whopping fare hikes nearly in half.

The agency previously said that it would jack up the price of riding the subways by 7.5 percent in both 2015 and 2017.

Both those planned increases are being rolled back to 4 percent, officials said at the start of a board meeting Wednesday.

The new rates will also apply to train and bus fares, along with the tolls for crossing the agency’s bridges and tunnels.

Details on the new fares and tolls weren’t released, but they are expected to save riders and drivers a total $905 million between 2015 and 2017.

MTA Chief Financial Officer Bob Foran said the agency would offset the anticipated revenue loss in part through $500 million in “aggressive” cost-cutting, with $50 million less spending in 2013, followed by another $150 million in 2015 and $300 million in 2016.

Foran said the cuts “won’t be easy to achieve” and will require three years of “net-zero” wage increases, despite calls by the Transit Workers Union for a raise to recognize their efforts in re-building the transit system after the damage done by Hurricane Sandy last year.

The agency will also skimp on materials and supplies, and reduce its costs for workers compensation and other benefits.

Foran also said the MTA’s projected bottom line had improved by $791 million since July, when it released its budget for 2014-2017.

He cited increased use of the rails and roads, along with higher real-estate tax receipts and lower-than-expected health-care and pension costs.

In September, an audit by state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli revealed that the MTA had racked up a $1.9 billion surplus — but was still planning on higher fare increases.

The MTA said then that it would consider lower fare and toll increases, but was concerned about pension and health-care costs, as well as unstable real-estate tax receipts.

“The MTA’s financial outlook is much improved. While funding the next capital program and improving services are critically important, reducing the size of planned fare and toll hikes must also be considered,” DiNapoli said at the time.

“There is plenty of time before the next scheduled fare increase for the MTA to refocus its efforts on reducing waste, which could go a long way toward easing the financial burden on commuters.”

MTA board member Allen Cappelli said the agency was “moving in the right direction.”

Decreasing the burden on our riders and toll-payers is absolutely the way we must go. The prior plan was completely untenable. I applaud the shift in thinking,” Cappelli said.

TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen blasted the no-raises part of the plan, saying the the MTA is “flush with cash” and “has more than enough revenue to pay a decent raise to its workers, and enough revenue to completely forgo a fare increase for the foreseeable future.”

“They’re tossing a few crumbs at the public and expect to be patted on the back. It’s pretty outrageous,” Samuelsen said.

So by slashing the rate hikes, riders are 'saving' $905M. Such is the tortured nonsense of the NY Post. The only tax hike The Post loves is a regressive one, on the backs of the poor, the young, and the elderly.